McKenna Knows Time Is Not On His Side

In the modern game, patience is no longer virtuous. We have increasingly seen more and more clubs losing their patience quickly, and I am not just referring to former Premier League clubs such as Watford! It occurs almost everywhere these days.

They say that patience is the road to wisdom, and as American author, Pauline Joyce Meyer once said, “Patience is not simply the ability to wait, it’s about how we behave while we are waiting!” Now that makes sense. Money is the driving force behind football, and every club needs lots of it to survive. It is no coincidence that some of the big Premier fish have been bought by some rather dubious owners, with fingers in different pies. It’s all about the money, it’s all about the dum dum dum a dum dum…

It is no coincidence too that Newcastle United was bought by the Saudi Sovereign Public Investment Fund, which is largely owned by  Prince Mohammed Bin Salman. The same man who allegedly is responsible for the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, who was killed inside the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, as he arranged to get married.

It is no coincidence either that the deal was approved by The Premier League. They are a shady lot too. What happened to their expression of ‘bringing the game into disrepute? If this does not fit the bill, then I don’t know what does! The race to the top is a cut-throat business, and as supporters, we all fall victim to it. Football merchandise is big business, and it helps to pay the vastly inflated wages of the modern-day professional footballer. If you love your club, you will have to pay for the privilege.

I doubt whether Sir Bobby Robson would have lasted with Ipswich Town as long as he did, under the present football regime. Few managers can stick around for long if they do not achieve almost instant success. Very few football clubs have any patience anymore. We are lucky that our new owners are football fans. We are lucky too that they are prepared to invest in this club. That said, they follow the American work ethic and failure is not forgiven. McKenna has one full season to get it right – and maybe less if we are struggling again around Christmas time. I think not. I certainly hope not!